Hotel Splendide

July 4, 2013

Like a scene from the Terence Gross film we payed the (external) location of Hotel Splendide a visit. It was a visit with a focus on relaxation rather than photography but it didn’t stop the camera being exercised during the late evening sunset. All the images in this post were taken with the X-Pro1 and brilliant 14mm Fujinon lens.

I was literally only out for an hour as the sun rapidly faded over the Irish Sea but managed to attach my brilliant Lee filter system to the lens for some long exposure captures. The top image uses the Lee graduated ND filter and the ultra long exposure shots employ the Lee big stopper.

You can click on the images to view larger on flickr. There are two larger versions of the hotel including a mono also on flickr, view the entire County Down Set here.

X100s Panaroma Photos

These two panoramic photos of the mournes were captured with the X100s a few hours earlier. They are definitely best viewed on flickr where there are 2000px wide cropped versions of the images.

Click to view large on flickr.

I was under the pressure of time so these are all quick captures from along the front of the Newcastle sea front. Exposure times range from 60 to a full 120 seconds and to be honest I probably should have pushed for longer.

As for the film ‘Hotel Splendide’ well it is a tricky enough film to get your hands on. An independent dark comedy starring Toni Collette and Daniel Craig, it made appearances at a number of film festivals and can still be picked up on DVD in selected, mostly online stores.

The true location of Hotel Splendide will be instantly recognisable to anyone who has visited the Newcastle coastline. I should add that the reality of the Slieve Donard couldn’t be further than the scary, shambolic Hotel Splendide portrayed in the film.